Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) has gained importance to identify links between the genome and the proteome. Adipose tissue has emerged as an active tissue, which secretes a wide range of molecules that have been related to metabolic and obesity-related disorders, such as diabetes, cardiovascular failure, metabolic syndrome, or cancer. In turn, epigenetics has raised the importance in discerning the possible relationship between metabolic disorders, lifestyle and environment. However, ChIP application in human adipose tissue is limited by several factors, such as sample size, frozen sample availability, high lipid content and cellular composition of the tissue...

The nutritional environment to which animals are exposed in early life can lead to epigenetic changes in the genome that influence the risk of obesity in later life. Here, we demonstrate that the fibroblast growth factor-21 gene (Fgf21) is subject to peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) α-dependent DNA demethylation in the liver during the postnatal period. Reductions in Fgf21 methylation can be enhanced via pharmacologic activation of PPARα during the suckling period. We also reveal that the DNA methylation status of Fgf21, once established in early life, is relatively stable and persists into adulthood...

Krüppel-Like Factor 14 (KLF14) gene, which appears to be a master regulator of gene expression on the adipose tissue and have previously been associated with BMI and Type 2 diabetes (T2D) by large GWAS studies. In order to find predictive biomarkers for the development of T2D, it is necessary to take into account changes in the epigenome affected by environmental factors. This study focused on aging and obesity, which are T2D risk factor, and examines epigenetic changes and inflammatory changes. Thus we investigated DNA methylation change at Klf14 promoter region of different organs using mice for comparing aging and weight...

The incidence of metabolic disorders like type 2 diabetes (T2D) and obesity continue to increase. While it is evident that the increasing incidence of diabetes confers a global societal and economic burden, the mechanisms responsible for the increased incidence of T2D are not well understood. Extensive efforts to understand the association of early life perturbations with later onset of metabolic diseases, the founding principle of DOHaD, have been crucial in determining the mechanisms that may be driving the pathogenesis of T2D...

The rapidly shifting field of epigenetics has expanded scientific understanding of how environmental conditions affect gene expression and development. This article focuses on two ongoing clinical trials-one in the United States and one in the United Kingdom-that have used epigenetics as the conceptual basis for testing the relationship between nutrition and obesity during pregnancy. Drawing on ethnographic research, I highlight the different ways that clinical scientists interpret epigenetics to target particular domains of the environment for prenatal intervention...

Fat mass and obesity-associated protein (FTO) is a RNA demethylase, whether FTO regulates fat metabolism through its demethylation is unclear. The results of this study confirmed that N6-methyladenosine (m6 A) is associated with fat accumulation both in vivo and in vitro. The data showed that FTO down-regulated m6 A levels, decreased mitochondrial content, and increased triglyceride (TG) deposition. However, an FTO (R316A) mutant lacking demethylation activity could not regulate mitochondria and TG content, indicating that FTO affects mitochondrial content and fat metabolism by modulating m6 A levels in hepatocytes...

The N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modification plays a central role in epigenetic regulation of the mammalian transcriptome. m6A can be demethylated by the fat mass- and obesity-associated (FTO) protein and the α-ketoglutarate-dependent dioxygenase alkB homolog 5 (ALKBH5) protein. Much less is known about that whether m6A content is involved in POI (premature ovarian insufficiency) disease. In this case-controlled study, 69 POI and 53 tubal occlusion patients were recruited from the reproduction centers in our hospital...

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: While the burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD) is on the decline globally, it is on the rise among South Asians. South Asians are also believed to present early with coronary artery disease (CAD) compared with other ethnicities. RECENT FINDINGS: South Asians have demonstrated a higher burden of premature CAD (PCAD) compared with other ethnicities. These findings are not limited to non-immigrant South Asians but have also been found in immigrant South Asians settled around the world...

INTRODUCTION: Women, their Offspring and iMproving lifestyle for Better cardiovascular health of both (WOMB) project is the follow-up of the LIFEstyle study, a randomised controlled trial in obese infertile women, and investigates the effects of a preconception lifestyle intervention on later health of women (WOMB women) and their children (WOMB kids). METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Obese infertile women, aged between 18 and 39 years, were recruited in 23 Dutch fertility clinics between June 2009 and June 2012...

Epigenetic regulation of cellular function provides a mechanism for rapid organismal adaptation to changes in health, lifestyle, and environment. Associations of cytosine-guanine di-nucleotide (CpG) methylation with clinical endpoints that overlap with metabolic phenotypes suggest a regulatory role for these CpG sites in the body's response to disease or environmental stress. We previously identified 20 CpG sites in an epigenome-wide association study (EWAS) with metabolomics that were also associated in recent EWASs with diabetes-, obesity-, and smoking-related endpoints...

Epigenetic modifications are hereditable and modifiable factors that do not alter the DNA sequence. These epigenetic factors include DNA methylation, acetylation of histones and non-coding RNAs. Epigenetic factors have mainly been associated with cancer but also with other diseases and conditions such as diabetes or obesity. In addition, epigenetic modifications could play an important role in cardiovascular diseases, including stroke. We review the latest advances in stroke epigenetics, focusing on DNA methylation studies and the future perspectives in this field...

Cytokines in the reproductive tract environment at conception mediate a dialogue between the embryo and maternal tissues to profoundly influence embryo development and implantation success. Through effects on gene expression and the cell stress response, cytokines elicit an epigenetic impact with consequences for placental development and fetal growth, which in turn affect metabolic phenotype and long-term health of offspring. There is substantial evidence demonstrating that pro-survival cytokines, such as GM-CSF, CSF1, LIF, HB-EGF and IGFII, support embryos to develop optimally...

PURPOSE: Dietary supplementation with probiotics during pregnancy has been suggested to decrease the risk for obesity in women after delivery and to minimize excessive weight gain in their children. Epigenetic DNA methylation has been proposed to impact on gene activity, thereby providing a plausible molecular mechanism for a broad range of biological processes and diseases. This pilot study aimed to evaluate whether probiotic supplementation during pregnancy could modify the DNA methylation status of the promoters of obesity and weight gain-related genes in mothers and their children...

According to the Developmental Origin of Health and Disease (DOHaD) concept, maternal obesity and accelerated growth in neonates program obesity later in life. White adipose tissue (WAT) has been the focus of developmental programming events, although underlying mechanisms remain elusive. In rodents, WAT development primarily occurs during lactation. We previously reported that adult rat offspring from dams fed a high-fat (HF) diet exhibited fat accumulation and decreased peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) mRNA levels in WAT...

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer diagnosis and the second and third leading cause of cancer mortality in men and women, respectively. However, the majority of CRC cases are the result of sporadic tumorigenesis via the adenoma-carcinoma sequence. This process can take up to 20 years, suggesting an important window of opportunity exists for prevention such as switching toward healthier dietary patterns. The Mediterranean diet (MD) is a dietary pattern associated with various health benefits including protection against cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity, and various cancers...

Antibiotics are the first line of treatment against infections and have contributed immensely to reduce the morbidity and mortality rates. Recently, extensive use of antibiotics has led to alterations of the gut microbiome, predisposition to various diseases and most importantly, increase in the emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which poses a major threat to global public health. Another major issue faced worldwide due to unregulated use of antibiotics in children as well as in adults is the influence of metabolism and body weight homeostasis, leading to obesity...

Epigenetic age is an indicator of biological aging, capturing the impact of environmental and behavioral influences across time on cellular function. Deviance between epigenetic age and chronological age (AgeAccel) is a predictor of health. Pubertal timing has similarly been associated with cancer risk and mortality rate among females. We examined the association between AgeAccel and pubertal timing and adolescent breast composition in the longitudinal Growth and Obesity Cohort Study. AgeAccel was estimated in whole blood using the Horvath method at breast Tanner 2 (B2) and 4 (B4)...